MasukFor an hour, the only sounds were turning pages and the low hum of the data drive.Xavier sat at the far end of the table, managing security shifts and secure lines. He barely spoke, but I could feel his attention on me through the bond. Ciel stayed close to the surface, alert to every flicker of anger and every uncomfortable realization.The raw files were worse than the summaries. Shell companies concealed transfers to the North, each payment timed to coincide with council votes.For eighteen months, Kane had used three border territories as leverage. He had covered his tracks with a trail of what his records called "inconvenient claims." Witnesses who vanished, fell ill, or were silenced before they could testify before the council.My name appeared once, in a marginal note dated six years ago.Holloway Omega. Disowned. Useful bloodline. Monitor for reclamation potential.I read it again, searching for some other meaning. There wasn't one.Ciel's voice dropped to a whisper. They we
I came out of the shower to find the suite quieter than it had been all morning.Xavier stood at the long table near the windows, the Kane files spread in careful stacks. He had changed into a black shirt with the sleeves rolled once, collar open. The Gleipnir's matching silver caught the light when he turned his head.He looked at me for a long second. The bond carried residual heat from the apology still sitting between us, and underneath it the same tight, watchful fear that had not left since the testing strip turned dark."Come here."I walked to him. He did not make me kneel this time. Instead, he turned me so my back faced the glass and the black banners moving in the courtyard below. His hands settled on my waist, then slid up, mapping the line of my spine through the thin robe I had thrown on."New rules," he said quietly. "You may leave this suite. Kaelen or one of his men will be with you at all times. You will wear the Gleipnir visibly. No high c
Xavier had not spoken in several minutes. He stood with his back to me, one hand braced on the edge of the desk, head slightly bowed. The bond between us was a tight, vibrating wire—anger, fear, and something darker that had no clean name.When he finally turned, his eyes were almost black."On your knees."The order was quiet. Absolute.I went down.The carpet was soft under my shins. I kept my spine straight because the alternative felt like surrendering more than I was willing to give. Xavier walked toward me slowly, stopping close enough that I had to tip my head back to meet his gaze. His fingers found the Gleipnir and closed around it, not tight enough to choke, just enough to remind me it was there."Start from the beginning," he said. "Every detail. Who knocked. What the attendant looked like. Exactly what he said. Do not leave anything out."I told him.The young man in winter-blue. The silver tray. The way he had set it down without waiting for permission. The vague answer w
Shortly after ten, a young attendant arrived with a silver tray and tea while I was halfway through the documents Matias had recovered from Kane's office. "Tea, my lady." "I didn't order any." "The kitchens sent it up." He set the tray beside my papers and stepped toward the door before I could ask for an explanation. "Who told you to bring it?" He paused. "I was instructed to deliver it here." "By whom?" "I don't know, my lady." He left before I could press him further. The door closed. Turning back to the documents, the faint scent of bergamot hit me, just as Ciel stirred uneasily within. Don't touch it. My hand stopped above the cup. Why? I leaned back in the silence, save for the ticking mantel clock. The tea and the tray looked completely normal, and that was exactly why I was worried. As I reached for the bell, Kaelen entered with a leather case, his gaze shifting from my face to the untouched cup. "You haven't drunk it?" "No. Ciel warned me." His expression
Morning came without warmth.Xavier was already awake, dressing with his usual precision on the edge of the bed.I sat up. The Gleipnir shifted against my throat, a familiar weight that suddenly felt heavier."You're leaving early," I said."Atticus is waiting. We need options on Kane before the council session this afternoon." His voice was calm. Controlled. The same voice he used in boardrooms and court. "Stay in the wing. Kaelen will be nearby."The order landed poorly.I pushed the blankets aside and stood. "We're doing this again."He glanced over his shoulder. "Doing what?""Locking the doors. Deciding for me. Treating me like something that has to be managed instead of someone standing in the same room."Xavier turned fully to face me. "This is not about management. This is about the fact that a senior advisor to the King has been funding attempts to force your collar off. You are a target.""I've been a target sin
The medical wing smelled of antiseptic, steel, and blood. Shirtless and bandaged, Matias leaned against the headboard, his pale face bruised but his eyes sharp with anger.An ignored drink sat nearby.Kaelen stood by the door while Atticus reviewed Matias's papers; Xavier closed the door behind us.Matias gave me a faint, crooked smirk. "Still wearing the jewelry, I see," he said. "I was starting to think the palace might have swallowed you.""You're one to talk," I answered. "You look like you lost a fight with a carriage.""I won," he corrected. "Barely. And I kept the important part."He nodded toward the papers in Atticus's hands.Xavier stepped forward. "Show me."Atticus spread the documents across the metal table: financial trails, encrypted emails, and a list of names. The Silverskiölds were involved, but they were no longer at the top.One name sat higher than the rest.Lord Edran Kane.King Nikol







